Just like that, we're already on week five of school. It feels like not too long ago I couldn't even read any Hangul, and now I'm preparing for my final exam.
Monday at school we learned the final unit from our textbook. After school, I met one last time with my SNU language partner. I helped her review an English essay before we studied Korean, and it was a very well written essay. Then we spent a much more grueling time reviewing for my exam. She says that she's proud of how much progress I've made since the first day we met, and I still think that she's been incredibly helpful in that progress.
That night, I went to the famous Nanta show in Myeongdong. It's an interesting concept: fusion between percussion ensemble, cooking, and comedy. The show doesn't rely on language, so even people who don't know any Korean won't have problems enjoying the show. I loved it, and it's definitely something I recommend to everyone who visits Seoul.
\
After the show, I went to visit the sheep cafe in Seoul, also known as the Thanks Nature cafe. The actual cafe is inside, but the two resident sheep hang out in a gated area across from the front door. The sheep were really fluffy, but they kept baaing at me, so I was scared to touch them (the cafe had a warning about biting).
Tuesday for class we had to meet in a classroom in a different building because another group had reserved our normal classroom or something. After class, I went with Lucille and students from high level classes to lunch at the same restaurant we went to after the tea ceremony last week. This time I got a carbonera pasta, which was delicious.
Then I was planning to go to Bukchon Hannok Village, and Eva and Sarah decided to come along, too. We had a little bit of trouble finding the village, so first we ended up at Changdeokgung palace. The palace was so beautiful. I really enjoyed the landscaping. It wasn't a huge palace, but I think the smaller size made the palace more cozy/quaint feeling.
We also saw one of the infamous matching couples of Seoul walking around the palace. Apparently it's popular here for couples to dress exactly alike, including shirt, pants, socks, accessories, and shoes. I had never seen one up close before, but it was definitely weird to see. I'm not sure I understand that trend very well..
After the palace, we eventually found the hannok village. It was nice to walk around and take a look, but there wasn't really anything to do besides that. Pretty soon after, I left to go meet Daria and Carina at Namsam Tower. I was going to ride the cable car to the top to get the nice view, but I couldn't find the cable car station. While I was searching for it, I found a hiking path that led to the top, so I followed several groups of people up to the top. This path was entirely manmade, so I'm not sure if I'd really consider it hiking, but the stairs were nonetheless a challenge to climb. On my way up, I met a lady who works for the US government stationed in Seoul, and she told me that the best way to appreciate the view from the top is to walk up, like we were doing.
At the top, I met with Carina and Daria. We walked around and I took pictures of everything. Some nice random guy even showed us the perfect photo place. It was really humid, so there was a nice haze of ther the buildings. As a result, photography was difficult, but I still tried my best!
We also got to see the famous Namsan lock wall, where couple will go to attach a lock to a chain or something, which is supposed to make their love last forever. Naturally at such a romantic space, there were too many kissing couples. I wanted pictures of the scenery from that lookout point, however, so I braved the PDA and I think the pictures were worth it.
I would say it's been a good start to the week, but the time we all have left is starting to tick down more and more quickly.
No comments:
Post a Comment